Pistons roll to 10th win in row
The Detroit Pistons were worried about a letdown Wednesday night.
It wasn't a concern for long.
The Pistons took the lead for good midway through the first quarter and headed into the all-star break with their 10th straight win, 96-80 over the visiting Indiana Pacers.
"This could have been a dangerous game, because you have guys looking forward to the break," said Chauncey Billups, one of three Pistons heading to New Orleans for the game. "This is a good win because we took care of business and put those guys away.
"You hate to leave a streak like this, but we'll have to come back and rev it back up."
Billups, Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince led a balanced attack with 14 points each, while Jason Maxiell added 11 points and 11 rebounds. The Pistons haven't lost since Jan. 21 and are 31-8 since an 8-5 start.
"They are just a much better basketball team than we are," Pacers coach Jim O'Brien said.
Spurs 112, Cavaliers 105: Manu Ginobili made a career-high eight 3-pointers and scored a season-high 46 points as visiting San Antonio defeated Cleveland.
im Duncan added 23 points and 13 rebounds for the Spurs, who completed their annual rodeo road trip at 6-3.
LeBron James scored 39 points -- 18 in the fourth -- but Cleveland's superstar was again no match for the Spurs, who swept the Cavaliers in last June's finals.
Rockets 89, Kings 87: Steve Novak hit a 3-pointer with two seconds left to give host Houston it's the win over Sacramento, the Rockets' eighth straight 17th victory in the last 20 games.
Ron Artest led the Kings with 30 points.
Yao Ming led the Rockets with 25 points and 14 rebounds.
Lakers 117, Timberwolves 92: Kobe Bryant scored 29 points, Pau Gasol pitched in another well-rounded game, Lamar Odom had a triple-double, and Los Angeles beat Minnesota to finisht its road trip 7-2.
Gasol blocked 3 shots and was 9-for-11 from the field, finishing with 10 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists.
Celtics 111, Knicks 103: Paul Pierce scored 24 points, and all-star teammate Ray Allen added 21 to help host Boston beat New York and head into the break with a five-game winning streak.
Jamal Crawford scored 26 points for New York, and Zach Randolph had 20 points and 13 rebounds in just 26 minutes before fouling out.
Magic 109, Nuggets 98: Rashard Lewis scored 25, and Dwight Howard had 23 points and 24 rebounds as Orlando beat visiting Denver.
Carmelo Anthony had 32 points for Denver before fouling out late in the fourth quarter, and Allen Iverson had 21 points and 7 assists.
Mavericks 96, Trail Blazers 76: Dirk Nowitzki scored a season-high 37 points, and Jason Terry added 24, helping host Dallas easily beat Portland.
Brandon Roy scored 25 points for the Trail Blazers, who who go into the all-star break having lost four straight and six of eight.
Raptors 109, Nets 91: Chris Bosh had 27 points, Jose Calderon had 22 points and 12 assists, and Toronto beat visiting New Jersey.
Jamario Moon finished with 15 points and Andrea Bargnani added 14 as the Raptors snapped a three-game home losing streak.
Sixers 102, Grizzlies 88: Andre Iguodala had 29 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists as Philadelphia beat memphis to win its fifth straight and complete a perfect homestand before the all-tar break.
Hakim Warrick and Rudy Gay scored 23 points each for the Grizzlies.
Bobcats 100, Hawks 98 (OT): Jeff McInnis' hook shot with 51.4 seconds left in overtime gave Charlotte a victory over visiting Atlanta.
Raymond Felton scored 22 points and Emeka Okafor had 20 points and 22 rebounds for the Bobcats, who overcame a 14-point deficit in the second half to snap a seven-game losing streak.
Hornets 111, Bucks 107: Peja Stojakovic hit a 3-pointer with 15 seconds left, and all-stars David West and Chris Paul combined for 43 points for New Orleans scored the game's final 5 points to win at Milwaukee.
The Bucks, losers of seven of their last eight, came back and took their first lead in over seven minutes when rookie Yi Jianlian, who had 13 points, hit a 16-footer with 28 seconds to play to make it 107-106.